Fall/Winter 2020-2021
Note: Many of the courses listed below are cross-listed. A cross-listed course is offered jointly by teaching units in two or more Faculties. For further details about the cross-listing of a particular course, click the Course Information link for that course.
| Session | Course Code | Cross-Listing | Course Title | Course Information | Instructor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F20 | SC/STS 2010 3.00 | AP/HIST 2810 3.00 | History of Modern Science | Course Information | Daniela Monaldi |
| W21 | SC/STS 2210 3.00 | AP/HUMA 2210 3.00
AP/HIST 2822 3.00 |
Technology in the Modern World | Course Information | Dov Lungu |
| W21 | SC/STS 3170 3.00 | Philosophy of Science | Course Information | Jagdish Hattiangadi | |
| W21 | SC/STS 3500 3.00 | The Global Information Society | Course Information | Ian Slater | |
| W21 | SC/STS 3775 3.00 | Physics in the 20th Century | Course Information | Daniela Monaldi | |
| W21 | SC/STS 2222 3.00 | Exploring Gender in Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics | Course Information | Daniela Monaldi | |
| W21 | SC/STS 3790 3.00 | Science and Technology Issues in Global Development | Course Information | Conor Douglas | |
| F20 | SC/STS 2110 3.00 | AP/PHIL 2110 3.00 | Truth, Theory and Superstition | Course Information | Jagdish Hattiangadi |
| F20 | SC/STS 2411 3.00 | Introduction to Science and Technology Studies | Course Information | James Elwick | |
| F20 | SC/STS 3400 3.00 | Thinking with Things: Material Culture in STS | Course Information | Helene Mialet | |
| F20 | SC/STS 4655 3.00 | From the Ark to the Anthropocene | Course Information | Ernst Hamm | |
| F20 | SC/STS 3730 3.00 | Science, Technology and Modern Warfare | Course Information | Dov Lungu | |
| F20 | SC/STS 3600 3.00 | Technological Failure | Course Information | Conor Douglas | |
| F20 | SC/STS 4785 3.00 | Science, Health and Food | Course Information | Daniela Monaldi | |
| Y 20-21 | SC/STS 4501 6.00 |
|
Seminar in Science and Technology Studies | Course Information | Helene Mialet |
| W21 | SC/STS 4090 3.00 | Studying Science in the Wild | Course Information | Helene Mialet | |
| W21 | SC/STS 3780 3.00 | Biomedical Science in Social & Historical Context | Course Information | Conor Douglas |
SC/STS 2010 3.00 History of Modern Science
This course explores some of the central issues and theories in the history of physical and life sciences since the Renaissance. The focus is on the institutional trends and changing conceptual frameworks as they related to larger societal change.
Prerequisites
Completion of 24 credits
Exclusions
- PREVIOUSLY OFFERED AS: C/STS 2010 6.00
Cross Listings
AP/ HIST 2810 3.00
SC/STS 2110 3.00 Truth, Theory and Superstition
There are diverse views on how to improve one's understanding of research, even in the case of established natural or social sciences. This course investigates theories of scientific methodology that illustrate the conflict between truth and superstition.
Prerequisites
None
Exclusions
- AP/PHIL 2110 3.00 (prior to Fall 2012)
Cross Listings
AP/PHIL 2110 3.0
SC/STS 2210 3.00 Technology in the Modern World
This course examines the critical interconnections among technology, politics, culture, the arts, the sciences and social life. Specific topics will vary from year to year, covering social and historical contexts that may include Europe, North America, Africa, and Asia between 1500 and the present.
Prerequisites
Not Available
Exclusions
- SC/STS 3700 6.0 (prior to Winter 2014)
- AP/HUMA 3700 6.00 (prior to Winter 2014)
Cross Listings
AP/HUMA 2210 3.00, AP/HIST 2822 3.00
SC/STS 2411 3.00 Introduction to Science and Technology Studies
This course introduces students to the interdisciplinary field of science and technology studies. Using case studies, it considers how knowledge about science and technology develops. It analyses the social responsibility of the scientist and the public engagement with techno scientific expertise.
Prerequisites
None
Exclusions
- AP/HUMA 2411 6.00
Cross Listings
None
SC/STS 3170 3.00 Philosophy of Science
An examination and critique of the history, fundamental assumptions and methodologies of science. Topics to be discussed may include the nature of scientific theories, the problem of induction, theories of probability, and the demarcation and growth of scientific knowledge.
Prerequisites
- AP/PHIL 2110 3.00 or at least six credits in philosophy.
Exclusions
None
Cross Listings
None
SC/STS 3500 3.00 The Global Information Society
This course explores the role of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in today’s global society. We will examine three critical questions about our current information age, which include:
a) Are ICTs the key to solving our world’s current social problems?
b) Are humans becoming too dependent on computer automation to perform labor and leisure tasks?
c) Should we expect any kind of individual privacy with the increased use of ICTs in today’s world?
Prerequisites
None
Exclusions
None
Cross Listings
None
SC/STS 3600 3.00 Technological Failure
This course challenges our common understandings of why technologies fail. Using approaches drawn from history, sociology and philosophy of technology, it critically examines the complex relationships between human action, the social contexts of knowledge and the proper functioning of machines.
Prerequisites
Completion of 24 credits
Exclusions
- SC/STS 3600 6.00
Cross Listings
None
SC/STS 4655 3.00 From the Ark to the Anthropocene
This course examines episodes in the history of the geo-sciences and environmental sciences from the seventeenth century to the present. Topics range from: chronologies of the earth; Enlightenment theories of the earth; fossils, extinction and the origins of paleontology; mining and its relations to the geosciences; the development of plate tectonics; meteor impact theory; ideas of the Anthropocene. The course emphasizes the connections between scientific, philosophical, technological and social change.
Prerequisites
Completion of 60 credits
Exclusions
None
Cross Listings
None
SC/STS 3730 3.00 Science, Technology, and Modern Warfare
This course explores the interplay between warfare, scientific development, and technological change in a broad societal context through a series of representative case-studies from the past and the present. Enhances students' understanding of some of the main forces that shape our world.
Prerequisites
None
Exclusions
- SC/STS 3730 6.00
Cross Listings
None
SC/STS 3775 3.00 Physics in the 20th Century
This course examines both the philosophical questions raised by historical developments in modern physics and historical-scientific questions raised by philosophical inquiry. Note: No background in physics required. Readings include scientific, historical and philosophical texts.
Prerequisites
None
Exclusions
None
Cross Listings
None
SC/STS 2222 3.00 Exploring Gender in Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics
Gender is one of the most powerful shapers of human societies. How does it affect, and how is it affected by, science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM)? This course explores the relationship between STEM based disciplines and gender. It examines how concepts of gender shape STEM based institutions, practices, and culture and it investigates how STEM research has shaped historical and current understandings of gender. Selected topics include: theories of gender and techno-science, gendered representations of science and technology in popular media, gender imbalance in STEM, and the gendering of military, medical, domestic, and digital technologies.
Prerequisites
None
Exclusions
- AP/HUMA 3970 3.0
Cross Listings
None
SC/STS 3790 3.00 Science and Technology Issues in Global Development
This course examines a multiplicity of historical and cultural factors influencing and shaping scientific norms and technological practices in global development Moreover, this course seeks to address questions on how global development goals are affecting the utilization of planetary resources and the advancement of technological systems of production. One of the predominant objectives of this course is to elucidate the entanglements between science, technology and global development, and unpack further what global development means in the context of international cooperation and international security.
Prerequisites
None
Exclusions
None
Cross Listings
None
SC/STS 4110 3.00 Seminar in Philosophy of Science
An intensive examination of contemporary philosophical problems concerning the growth of science and technology selected from interpretations of theory, of models, of presumed facts, of presumed progress, of experimental technique, and of the place of values in science and technology.
Prerequisites
Completion of 9 credits including one of AP/PHIL 2110 3.00, AP/PHIL 3170 3.00, AP/PHIL 3270 3.00, or AP/PHIL 3280 3.00 or permission of the course director.
Exclusions
- AP/PHIL 4110 3.00
Cross Listings
None
SC/STS 4501 6.00 Seminar in Science & Technology Studies
The seminar builds upon students' existing skills in Science and Technology Studies. It will familiarize students with central themes in this interdisciplinary field that have emerged from efforts in history, philosophy and social studies of science and technology. Topics may include an examination of the nature and function of experiment, ethics, expertise, evidence, gender, instruments, language, policy, popularization, technological systems, risk, and visualization in science and technology.
Prerequisites
Completion of STS 2411 3.0
Exclusions
None
Cross Listings
- AP/SOSC 4501 6.0
SC/STS 3400 3.00 Thinking with Things: Material Culture in STS
This course examines principles and techniques used in evaluating the material culture of science and technology to explore connections to ideas, practices, and values of a particular era. Students apply methods of analysis to understand material culture in context.
Prerequisites
Completion of 24 credits.
Exclusions
No
Cross Listings
None
SC/STS 3780 3.00 Biomedical Science in Social & Historical Context
An examination of the changing nature of biomedical research, concepts, and practices since 1800. Topics for socio historical analysis include: public health, physiology, microbiology, risk factors, diagnostic technologies, drug development and policy, immunology, and genetic medicine.
Prerequisites
None
Exclusions
- AP/SOSC 3780 6.00
- SC/STS 3780 6.00
Cross Listings
None
SC/STS 4785 3.00 Science, Health and Food
An examination of how knowledge is generated and validated in health and food sectors through analysis of studies, statistics, publications, evidence-based medicine, government regulation and policy in Canada, the USA and the EU. Case studies will detail controversial issues.
Prerequisites
Completion of 60 credits
Exclusions
None
Cross Listings
None
SC/STS 4090 3.00 Studying Science in the Wild
An examination of how knowledge is generated and validated in health and food sectors through analysis of studies, statistics, publications, evidence-based medicine, government regulation and policy in Canada, the USA and the EU. Case studies will detail controversial issues.
Prerequisites
Completion of 60 credits of which a minimum of 6 are in STS, or by permission with the instructor.
Exclusions
None
Cross Listings
None
